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Is your meat slicer tearing rather than slicing the meat into neat slices? Then it may be time for you to consider sharpening the blade. To sharpen the blade of your meat slicer, you need to check out its type. Some slicers come without a sharpener built in and other types have an integrated sharpening stone.
Meat slicers that come with an integrated stone do not need to be sharpened as they sharpen themselves as they work. If yours does not self-sharpen, then you need to learn how to sharpen a meat slicer blade.
In this article, we are looking at the meat slicer that does not self-sharpen. Sharpening the blades is such slicers ensures that their quality is preserved and makes them last longer.
Table of Contents
How To Tell That A Meat Slicer Needs To Be Sharpened
The efficiency of a meat slicer depends on its sharpness. In fact, it has to be extremely sharp in order for it to be a good aid to the preparation of food. Experienced users of such tools will often have a process in place for ensuring that their slicers are never dull. However, those who do not have a lot of experience may not be able to realize the symptoms of a dull meat slicer blade.
You can check the state of your meat slicer blade using something with a smooth surface such as an apple or a tomato. If the blade struggles to cut through the tomato without you adding a significant amount of pressure, then you should know that the blade is dull. Also, check that the knife does not roll on the smooth surface of the tomato.
Another way of telling whether the meat slicer blade needs sharpening or not is to check the meat after you cut it. If the meat comes out looking shredded or the thickness of the slices starts differ, then you know the blade has become dull.
Things You Need To Sharpen A Meat Slicer
The process of sharpening your meat slicer will require the following things.
- The meat slicer itself
- Some water
- 2 Soft Clothes
- A mild detergent which is nonabrasive
- Water
- Sharpening oil, if you do not have sharpening oil you can always use cooking oil
- The manufacturer’s instructions on how to sharpen the blade
- Rubbing alcohol
Safety First
It is always important to remember that tools like a meat slicer are dangerous. Before you start on the process of sharpening the blade, you will need to clean it first using some water, cloth and the detergent. When cleaning the machine, ensure that it is turned off and unplugged from the electricity supply. Double check this always.
To clean the machine, you will need to take off the blade cover. Never submerge the machine in water while cleaning the blade. Use the other fresh cloth to dry the blade. Once the blade is dry, you can now apply the sharpening oil or cooking oil to the blade.
1. Buy The Sharpening Stone
The sharpening stone for your meat slicer can be bought from a local hardware store. You will need to ensure that the stone you are buying is the right one for the type of meat slicer you have.
2. Placing The Stone On The Meat Slicer
To do this step successfully, refer to the manufacturer’s instructions. This process involves placing the surface of the stone near the blade’s edge. The user manually will also tell you how to secure the sharpening stone to the machine.
3. Locking Everything In Place
Before you do anything on this step, you will need to locate the locking knob of the meat slicer. In most cases, this knob is on the left when you are facing the machine. Check on the base shaft. This locking knob is black plastic. It should be unscrewed from the shaft.
Lock both the sharpening stones and blade in place. The sharpening stones should be inserted in at the meat slicer’s base shaft. Then you should put the blade on the sharpening stones. The next step is to tighten the locking knob. To know that the knob is completely tight, you will hear a clicking sound.
4. Sharpening The Blade
When all the above steps have been accomplished, you can now plug back the meat slicer. Turn it on and allow the blade to sharpen for just about 30 seconds. You will then turn the sharpener off for about 4 seconds and turn it back again for another 30 seconds. Repeat this process 3 times.
Turn off the machine and check if the blade is sharp enough. If not, you may need to turn the machine on again and allow it to sharpen. You can use the tomato test to see if the machine is no longer dull. If it still struggles to cut a tomato smoothly, then it is not good enough.
5. Take The Sharpening Stone Off
Once the blade is sharp, it’s time to remove the stone. You do this by unscrewing the knob and sliding the stones off the blade. Remember to tighten the sharpener knob back into its place once you have removed the sharpening stone.
6. Clean The Blade
Before using the blade, you will need to clean it. You can use rubbing alcohol or a detergent and water. The reason for doing this is that you want to remove any metal particles that were produced while you were sharpening the blade.
With a sharper blade, we need to emphasize the need for always being careful when you are using this tool. The steps we have given above are general.
Remember that each product is different. Always refer to the manual which comes with your machine on how to sharpen the blade. When you are sharpening the blade, ensure that the work area is free of clutter. Also, ensure that you are focused on the task at hand. The blade should always be locked when no one is using it.
